The program is the brainchild of Women Networking in Electronic Transactions (W.net), which was founded in 2005 by Holli Targan, who is a Partner in the law firm of Jaffe, Raitt, Heuer & Weiss; Mary Gerdts, Chief Executive Officer and President of both POST Integrations, Inc. and EboCom, LLC; Linda Perry, Vice President and Regional Manager of Member Relations at Visa Inc.; and Diane Vogt, President of National Merchant Services for First Data Commercial Services.

The mission: to provide a forum where professional women in the industry can come together to educate themselves, learn from one another, meet other women, network and talk about balancing a flourishing career with a happy personal life.

"Women opening doors for women is at the heart of W.net's mission," said Victoria Tobin, W.net's Managing Director. "The Mentoring Program is one of the premiere benefits of membership in W.net and is designed to maximize the expertise of the brightest and most talented women in the industry to serve as mentors, to help foster the careers of the future female leaders in electronic transactions. We are thrilled to have the participation of these women in the program."

Members of W.net come from all corners of the payments industry: merchant acquirers, processors, card issuers, as well as those specializing in the stored value, loyalty, check and automated clearing house sectors.

They also represent a range of positions, including chief executive officers, managers and other leaders, and all levels of experience - rookies straight out of college to experienced veterans.

"It's an excellent way for women in our industry to exchange thoughts and bounce ideas off of each other," said W.net mentoring committee member Kate Gillespie. She is also General Manager and Chief Operating Officer of The Green Sheet.

Making new friends and forming alliances in the payments industry can be beneficial for the long haul to both new players and experts. Teamwork is successful when members understand one another and are working toward a common goal, and this seems to be the prominent message of W.net.

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